LAX advice for 405 Freeway shutdown: Avoid driving to or from the airport

Avoid driving, take public transit and allow extra time if you need to get in or out of Los Angeles International Airport during the 53-hour shutdown of the 405 Freeway next month. That's the advice from LAX, which has launched a 405 Freeway Alert Web page that outlines transit options for mid-July, when one of  the busiest freeways in Southern California will close for bridge demolition as part of a larger project.

The airport is south of the closure area, but traffic is expected to be heavy on east-west freeways such as the 10 and 105, as well as on surface streets, the airport's website says.

Here's the 411:

The closure: On July 16 and 17, the northbound 405 will be closed for 10 miles from the 10 Freeway to the 101 Freeway, including the Sepulveda Pass; the southbound 405 will close for four miles between the 101 Freeway and the Getty Center Drive exit.

Drivers can expect lane closures to begin as early as 7 p.m. Friday night (July 15), and reopening of ramps and connectors to go as late as 6 a.m. Monday (July 18). http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/la-trb-los-angeles-airport-405-shutdown-20110623,0,229860.story

 

Article  courtesy of The Los Angeles Times  By Mary Forgione Los Angeles Times Daily Travel & Deal blogger

 

 

 

New crisis planning urged for US nuclear plants

WASHINGTON - Calling the Japan nuclear disaster “unacceptable,’’ an expert task force convened by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has concluded that nuclear power plants in the United States need better protections for rare, catastrophic events.

http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/green/articles/2011/07/13/new_crisis_planning_urged_for_us_nuclear_plants/

Article courtesy of The Boston Globe –Green Blog by Dina Cappiello Associated Press

 

 

Trash trucks fueled by 'trash gas': a growing trend

The company that operates the largest trucking fleet in the waste industry is fueling more and more trucks with so-called trash gas. On Tuesday, Houston-based Waste Management Inc. will add its 1,000th truck fueled with natural gas. Powered with captured and converted methane gas from the company's Altamont, Calif., landfill, the new truck will service Long Beach, picking up recyclables.

North America's largest waste services company, Waste Management operates almost 300 landfills and runs 22,000 big trucks daily, 720 of which are in Southern California. All of the trucks Waste Management runs out of its L.A. Metro fueling station are powered with liquefied natural gas (LNG) derived from the methane generated through decomposition of organic waste in its Altamont landfill. Since November 2009, the landfill has been generating as much as 13,000 gallons of LNG per day. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2011/07/waste-management-trash-trucks.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GreenspaceEnvironmentBlog+%28Greenspace%29

Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times-Greenspace posted by Susan Carpenter

 

 

Series of earthquakes hit California-Mexico border region

A series of earthquakes have rattled the California-Mexico border region over the last day.

The largest of the quakes was a magnitude 4.1 temblor that hit near the the town of Ocotillo in Imperial County on Sunday night. A 3.4 shaker also occurred on Sunday, and magnitude 3.1 and 3.4 quakes were reported outside of Mexicali, Mexico, on Monday morning.

The quakes were felt in Mexico as well across parts of Imperial and San Diego counties, officials said.

In 2010, this area was shaken during the magnitude 7.1 Easter Sunday quake outside Mexicali, which killed two people in Mexico and caused nearly $100-million damage in California alone.

Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times by Shelby Grad

Charles River finalist for international river prize

The Charles River – once so dirty it turned colors depending on the paint being manufactured on its banks – is a finalist for the International Riverprize, an award that annually awards $350,000 for the development and implementation of visionary and sustainable river management. http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/green/greenblog/2011/07/_the_charles_river.html

Article courtesy of The Boston Globe-The Green Blog posted by Beth Daly

Smart fracking

Extracting natural gas from shale is safe and economically sensible

ENLIGHTENED MOMENTS in politics are few and far between. Populism has a lot to do with it; playing to fear, anger, and other emotions is a safe move politically, and what the media love most.

That’s why New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s decision to lift a ban on hydraulic fracturing - also known as “fracking’’ - should be celebrated as a victory for rational thought. His administration is now preparing regulations allowing access to 85 percent of the shale gas beneath the state. This has members of the hard-core environmental lobby gnashing their teeth. Their dramatic, and often misleading, claims drove last year’s ban in the first place. Cuomo’s move also strikes a blow for states’ rights and encourages a balanced approach to energy policy - and highlights some cool engineering as well. http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/green/articles/2011/07/11/smart_fracking/

Article courtesy of The Boston Globe - The Green Blog by John E. Sununu

Verizon Wireless to unveil its new facility in Waltham

WALTHAM - A digital jukebox with instant wireless access to 3 million songs. A device that extends cellphone coverage to the back of large grocery stores. And a suitcase that’s wirelessly connected to your social network and can tell you when you’ve forgotten to bring it along.

Which product is market-ready, which will be available soon, and which is a vision for future wireless technology?

At the Verizon Technology Innovation Center in Waltham, which will celebrate its grand opening tomorrow, it can be difficult to tell the present from the future.

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2011/07/11/verizon_wireless_to_unveil_its_new_facility_in_waltham/?p1=Well_Business_links

Article courtesy of The Boston Globe by Calvin Hennick